Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of human rhinovirus infection in children hospitalized due to lower respiratory tract infections in Yinchuan，China

Abstract:

Objective To retrospectively analyze the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of human rhinovirus（HRV） infection in children with lower respiratory tract infections in Yinchuan，China，and to provide a theoretical basis for prevention，diagnosis，and treatment of HRV in children.Methods The lower respiratory secretion specimens from 989 children with lower respiratory tract infections hospitalized in the Department of Pediatrics of Yinchuan Women and Children Healthcare Hospital from 2018 to 2019 were collected for virus detection by multiplex PCR. The basic information，clinical characteristics，and laboratory results of HRV cases were analyzed.Results Among the 989 children with lower respiratory tract infections，the total detection rate of HRV was 38.3%，the rate of HRV infection alone was 9.5%，and the rate of mixed infection with HRV and other viruses was 28.9%. There were 221（58.3%） male children and 158（41.7%） female children infected with HRV. HRV infections occurred all year round，but were mainly prevalent in summer and autumn. Of the children with HRV infection，87.3% were diagnosed with pneumonia and 13.7% with bronchitis and bronchiolitis，and 90.2% were less than six years old. Compared with non-HRV-infected children，HRV-infected children were more frequently to have fever and vomiting（P<0.05），but with no significant differences in clinical features such as cough，wheezing，stridor，and wheezing sounds（P>0.05）. In terms of laboratory indicators，there were significant differences in the levels of hemoglobin，red blood cell count，aspartate aminotransferase，alanine aminotransferase，and lactase（P<0.05）.Conclusion HRV is a common pathogen of lower respiratory tract infections in Yinchuan. Children under six years old are highly susceptible to HRV，with fever as the main symptom，and HRV infection can affect the lower respiratory tract to cause pneumonia，bronchitis，and bronchiolitis. HRV infection often co-exists with other viruses，with seasonal epidemics mainly during summer and autumn.